Hunter 2

Prologue

Deacon was leaning against the ornate stone fireplace that dominated one wall of his study. He was deep in thought. In his free hand was a half-finished whiskey. He brought it up to his lips and took a deep swig. It burned as he swallowed, but he relished it. The small fire in the heath crackled and danced lazily. He gazed into the flames while trying to figure out his next step, he froze for a slight moment as a cold chill ran itself across the back of his neck.

He was coming.

Finishing off his drink Deacon turned around, behind him on the wall opposite the fireplace sat a large piece of polished obsidian that took up almost all the wall. Around its jagged edges where rows of what appeared to be small scratches, a language known only to a few. Deacon caught a glimpse of himself in its mirrored surface, his blond hair was slightly ruffled and the top button of his shirt was open. He sneered, he looked like a street urchin. He quickly smoothed his hair back and buttoned his shirt.

The scratches on the edge of the obsidian mirror rippled and the reflection of the room in the mirror became clearer, its colours more intense. Ripples appeared across its surface like someone had chucked a stone in a small black pond. Deacon bowed slightly.

"Your plan worked perfectly my lord." More ripples appeared on the smooth surface, and Deacon nodded. "From what I gather he is better than expected."

More ripples disturbed the mirrored surface, Deacon again nodded as he made his way over to the large mahogany desk that sat in the gap between two stained glass windows, placing his now empty glass down he sat in the comfy leather chair.

"I have it here." Leaning over he opened a draw on the desk and pulled out a large gold cross. In its centre was a large purple gem that seemed to glow from within. He placed it on the desk than looked to the mirror. Its surface rippled again. "Yes, yes of course." He said as he nodded listening to the instructions.

"As you wish my Lord." The mirror rippled again. "Yes I have found them, its just a question of getting them. Are you sure this is a good idea?"

The mirrors ripples became faster and more frequent. Deacon sat up straight in his chair and looked at the mirror in alarm.

"No, of course not, I didn't mean to imply..." he faltered as more ripples appeared in quick succession. "Please forgive me, my Lord I won't question your plan again." His heart raced, it was not a good idea to upset a being of such power. One last ripple appeared on the mirror that spread out to the scratches that covered its edges. As the ripple faded away to nothing its surface went dark. Deacon caught a glimpse of himself in its reflection, a glimpse of the fear in his own eyes. He turned away, angry at himself. There was a short sharp knock at the door to the study.

"Enter." The door opened and in stepped a young man wearing a tight black suit and white shirt with a black tie. He had long black hair that covered his right eye while the other, light violet in colour did a quick scan of the room. The lower half of his face was covered by a small black silk scarf.

"Ah, Malachai, I'm glad you're here." The young man gave a short sharp nod. "It's time," Deacon glanced at the golden cross. "Lets see how he handles this shall we? Release it wherever you think it will cause the most damage." the purple gem set in the cross flickered with excitement. Even with half his face covered it was easy to see that Malachai was smiling.

GҰ/